Project Sonic - SEGA’s Forgotten Sonic Relaunch on Saturn

While Sonic had become a global icon during the Mega Drive era, his impact in Japan was far more limited. By the mid-90s, many Japanese players had discovered Sonic Team through games like NiGHTS… but had never truly experienced Sonic himself. Some even wrote in asking a simple question: “Who is Sonic?” Project Sonic was SEGA’s answer. Through releases like Sonic Jam and Sonic R, SEGA set out to educate, reintroduce, and evolve Sonic for a new generation of Saturn players; combining his past, present, and future into a single campaign. This video explores the origins of Project Sonic, why it existed, and how it changed the way Sonic was presented in Japan during the Sega Saturn era.